Total Reinforces its Exploration in West Africa

Aiswarya LakshmiOctober 12, 2017

Map: Total

Total and the National Office of Petroleum of Guinea (ONAP) signed a Technical Evaluation Agreement to study deep and ultra deep offshore areas located off the coast of Guinea Conakry, covering approximately 55,000 square kilometers.

“By taking this position on a new under-explored area, Total pursues its exploration strategy targeting deep offshore prospective basins,” declared Kevin McLachlan, Senior Vice President Exploration for Exploration & Production at Total.

“Therefore, Total has the opportunity to evaluate a very large area, located in an extension of the prolific Mauritania/Senegal basin where we already are. This will allow us to capitalize on our know-how and experience acquired in West Africa.”

According to the terms of this agreement, Total will have a year to assess the potential of the basin on the basis of existing data. At the end of this period, the Group will select three licenses to start an exploration program.

As part of the agreement, Total will also train ONAP staff to develop their technical skills in exploration and production.

Total is the first distributor of petroleum products in Guinea. Active in the country in Marketing & Services activities through its Total Guinée affiliate, the Group owns a retail network of 150 service stations, and a 47% stake in SGP (entity managing the country stocks). Total Guinée is also present in aviation activities operated through the SOMCAG depot (with a 66% share).